Hearing Held In The U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, And Transportation Aviation Subcommittee

FAA Certification was the topic of a hearing held Tuesday by the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, And Transportation Aviation Subcommittee.

U.S. Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH), chair of the Subcommittee on Aviation Operations, Safety, and Security, called the hearing as part of an ongoing process for reauthorizing the FAA.

Delays in the FAA’s certification process for new aircraft designs have sometimes resulted in long wait times, cost increases, and varying interpretations of regulations by FAA field offices. The hearing will examine potential solutions that could expedite approval processes and shorten the timeframe for U.S. products to enter the market while maintaining safety standards.

FAA certification is vital to the production of aircraft and aircraft components both domestically and internationally. Our certification means that the product was thoroughly reviewed, tested, and analyzed, and has been deemed to meet the stringent safety standards we require.

"Certification is a dynamic process with both industry and the FAA having important roles and responsibilities critical to success," said Dorenda Baker, Director of the FAA's Aircraft Certification Service. "We are constantly working to improve the process. Both in response to Congressional direction, and on our own initiative, the FAA is working closely with industry to understand and respond to their concerns in order to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the certification process without compromising safety.

"In order to support the safest, largest, most complex aviation system in the world, the FAA must continue to make our processes as efficient and effective as possible, while also maintaining high standards of safety," Baker told the committee. "The future vision of AIR, or AIR:2018, aligns with the FAA’s Strategic Initiatives and shows where we want to go and the type of work environment we want to create.

"Our vision is built around four key focus areas: safety, people, organizational excellence, and globalization. Certification reform is a key component of this vision. It includes initiatives in response to the requirements set forth in section 312 of the Federal Aviation Administration Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (the Act), and internally driven activities to improve several components of the current certification process."

In his prepared testimony, GAMA President and CEO Pete Bunce (pictured) noted the general aviation industry’s significant contributions to the U.S. economy. A recent industry-wide study by PricewaterhouseCoopers found that general aviation supports 1.1 million total jobs and $219 billion in total economic output in the United States annually. To continue to grow in a very competitive global marketplace, U.S. general aviation manufacturers need government policies that will streamline the certification process and enhance efficiency, making it easier for them to bring new, safety-enhancing products and technologies to market.
 
Specifically, Bunce outlined six priority areas for Senators to consider addressing in the next FAA reauthorization. These include:
 

• Ensuring more effective use of delegation programs, including Organizational Designation Authorization (ODA), to utilize FAA and industry resources more efficiently and effectively
• Focusing on workforce initiatives—training, performance objectives, career progression, and skill development—to enable the success of FAA employees
• Encouraging FAA to use metrics and qualitative surveys to provide constructive feedback on FAA and industry certification project performance
• Strengthening FAA international efforts to facilitate the timely acceptance of FAA-certified aircraft abroad
• Supporting efforts to help transition the piston aviation fleet from leaded to unleaded fuel
• Addressing inconsistencies in the interpretation of FAA regulations by different employees and regions of the FAA

 
Bunce also highlighted the importance of reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank of the United States, which expires on June 30, 2015. The Bank has provided at least $1.9 billion in financing guarantees for U.S.-based general aviation manufacturers since 2012, including small aircraft manufacturers and suppliers. While the United States market accounted for about four out of every five airplane sales a decade ago, the market in 2014 was roughly evenly split between U.S. and non-U.S. sales, making the Bank’s role in facilitating exports all the more important.
 
“At the core, GAMA has always worked to promote policies that benefit general aviation manufacturers and their employees by striving to achieve the FAA certification efficiencies needed to get their products to the marketplace,” Bunce said. “Collectively, with the leadership of the U.S. Congress as well as the FAA, we have made significant strides, but there is much work ahead of us to ensure this vital and important part of our economy can be sustained and grown. I believe we are now at a tipping point where we need to see efficiency initiatives take root within the regulatory bureaucracy. We will only realize this goal through the collective focus of policymakers, regulators, and industry on change management, and I want to thank Chairman Ayotte, Ranking Member Cantwell, and other members of the Subcommittee for convening this important hearing to discuss solutions.”

FMI: www.faa.gov, www.gama.aero